This theoretically oriented Ph.D. degree is uniquely beneficial for clinicians, counselors,
coaches, clergy, healers, educators, scholars, and artists who are already proficient
in a practical discipline and desire deeper study of the performance contexts that
advance the creative practices of the transformative arts.The program’s faculty and
associates comprise a renowned group of scholars, practitioners, and artists. Coursework
spans across academic disciplines and fields of practice and aims to study and contribute
to the ways creativity helps awaken systemic processes of transformation.

Thematic Emphases:

The creative art of transformation (circular therapeutics)

Systemic interactional know-how

Liberal arts orientation that embraces the humanities and performance arts

Multicultural approaches to health and well-being

Diverse forms of scholarship

What is Creative Systemic Studies?

The creative systemic studies doctoral program is inspired by the cybernetic ideas
and pragmatic practices that underlie the origin of systemic family therapy, using
them to explore diverse contexts of change. The program consists of 60 semester units
(two years of full-time coursework) plus a dissertation. Courses go beyond disciplinary
limitations and are informed by a wide range of academic interests and practices,
including the humanities and performing arts. Students will learn strategies of relevant
qualitative research, especially those methods that highlight transformative process
with a communication and performance emphasis.

Featuring a Theoretical (Non-Clinical) Program

Please note that this is a nonclinical program, and students will not be eligible
for the Marriage and Family Therapist license. It is a creative scholarly program
that has no formal relationship with AAMFT, ACA, or APA. This doctorate of philosophy
degree in marriage and family therapy with a concentration in creative systemic studies
is granted by the University of Louisiana at Monroe, a fully accredited public university
that is part of the University of Louisiana System. The curriculum is entirely online
and students are encouraged to complete the program in three years, which includes
a year of dissertation writing.

Our Learning Approach

While it is expected that students will be self-motivated and able to work independently,
they receive advisory support throughout the program. Students will work together
in a cohort, creating a learning community in which transformative skills and expressive
performance are developed and possibilities for collaboration are encouraged. All
courses are seminar-style where individuals are expected to participate in conversations
relevant to course content and its application to lived experience. The program values
the circular interaction between theory and practice and the importance of fostering
transformation inside and outside the classroom.